Nikola Jokić Left Bleeding Again—Fans Demand Urgent NBA Rule Change!
It was a night to forget for Nikola Jokic.
His Denver Nuggets side lost to the Boston Celtics on Sunday afternoon after being left bloodied by a familiar injury to his arm.
The Nuggets nearly rallied and overturned a 20-point deficit, but ultimately fell short in a 110-103 lost to the defending NBA champions.
Jokic ended the night with 20 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists in what was another strong performance by the Serbian.
His display came in spite of the fact he was limping from tip-off after he appeared to get injured.
Play had to be stopped as Jokic was seen bleeding profusely from a scratch on his arm.
Replays showed that Celtics center Luke Kornet landed on Jokic’s foot after the jumpball causing him to limp.
Following that the Serbian superstar took a shot to the arm and seemed to be bleeding a lot from his elbow, although no foul was called.
What was even more noticeable when play stopped and cameras zoomed in was all the other scratches Jokic had on his arm from similar injuries he has suffered over the years.
The three-time MVP is no stranger to being scratched on his arm as he accumulated a lot of scars from battling with a ton of physicality in the low post.
Nuggets’ analysts during the game fumed at lack of calls and the treatment of Jokic.
“It’s so easy to get calls on the perimeter and so difficult to get calls in the post,” Adam Mares said.
“I simply do not understand how Jokić can be dripping blood and still not get a call,” added AltitudeTV’s Katy Winge.
While fans online reacted to the call by claiming the NBA needs a rule change.
“There needs to be a nail length regulation! Seriously,” one fan posted on X.
“These nba players gotta be trimming their nails,” another wrote on X.
“These players need to trim their nails. How is this even allowed in the NBA? Also look at all Jokic’s other scratch scars. They really doing nothing about it,” one fan said.
A rule stipulating the length of a player’s nail is not unusual in sports.
In netball, guidelines require that ‘nails must be short and smooth. As a guideline, nails should be no longer than 1mm long and should not be seen from the underside of the finger.’
At the Olympics, Karate competitors had to keep their fingernails short and clean, and not interfere with their performance
A NBA rule requiring players to shorten the length of their nails may not be on the agenda anytime soon, but with the frequency of Jokic’s injuries, it might have to be something that is looked at.
Despite the defeat, the Nuggets are third in the Western Conference with a 39-22 record.